More Accept State Tax

Poll Finds Group Backing Repeal Remains Solid

More Accept Income Tax

Acceptance of the state income tax has grown slightly in the months since its enactment, but there is still a solid core of residents clamoring for its repeal, a new Courant/Connecticut Poll shows.

The number of state residents who want the tax left as is has nearly doubled since November, three months after the 4.5 percent levy was approved to help close a massive state-budget deficit.

At the same time, the number of people who want the tax repaired has declined, while the number who want it repealed has remained relatively constant.

Presented with three options, 19 percent of those surveyed said the tax should be kept as is, 33 percent said the tax should be changed so that "some pay more and others pay less," and 41 percent said it should be repealed.

A similar question in a November poll produced these results: 10 percent said the tax should be left as is, 52 percent said it should be modified and 36 percent said it should be repealed.

The poll of 500 residents, conducted April 21 to 27 by the University of Connecticut's Institute for Social Inquiry, has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points.

"The basic attitudes toward the income tax seem not to have changed appreciably. The opposition has not increased or decreased significantly but there may be more of a willingness to leave it as is," said poll director G. Donald Ferree Jr.

The tax on wages was adopted last August after a grueling and protracted legislative battle. Its passage kicked off a flurry of protests and gave rise to an anti-tax movement whose professed goal is to "ax the tax."

A bill that would reduce the tax burden on middle-income residents and compensate for the lost revenue by raising the taxes on upper-income earners is likely to be considered in the closing days of the legislation legislative session. Lawmakers are scheduled to adjourn Wednesday.

Although the fate of the bill is uncertain, the repair-vs.-repeal debate is not expected to die down any time soon.

The Connecticut Taxpayers Committee and other anti-tax groups have vowed to make "repeal" the cornerstone of this fall's General Assembly elections, and there is evidence to suggest that the issue will resonate with a sizable group of voters.

"An awful lot of people remain unreconciled to an income tax. There is a substantial number of people who want to get rid of it," Ferree said.

The polling got under way less than a week after taxpayers had to file state income tax returns for the first time, and presumably while the issue was still fresh in their minds.

Asked about the effect on their pocketbooks, 42 percent of those polled said they were entitled to a refund, while 35 percent said they ended up owing the state money. Seven percent estimated they came out even, and 16 percent said they did not know.

But most residents said they were not surprised by their tax bills. Nearly half, 49 percent, said the effect of the tax was about what they had expected, 34 percent said it was worse, and 10 percent said it was better.

When it comes to federal taxes, residents are scarcely more enthusiastic.

But the poll found that attitudes toward the federal system have not changed appreciably over the years, despite a major tax overhaul in 1986 that resulted in a lowering of most rates and the elimination of many deductions.

Respondents who think the federal tax structure is unfair outnumber those who think it is fair by 52 percent to 40 percent. Eight years ago, the percentages were 53 and 40, respectively.

In addition to thinking the system is stacked against them, residents also believe people, in general, are overtaxed.

A plurality, 43 percent, said Americans pay more than their fair share of federal taxes , while 33 percent said Americans pay "about their fair share," and 12 percent said less than their fair share.

Those describing themselves as Democrats were more likely to complain about overpaying than independents and Republicans, Ferree said.

When it comes to their own pocketbooks, however, state residents have a somewhat different outlook.

Slightly more than half, 55 percent, said their own family pays "about their fair share," 40 percent said they are overtaxed, and 1 percent said they do not pay enough.

Although former California Gov. Jerry Brown won the state's Democratic presidential primary in March, that doesn't mean residents necessarily approve of his plan to scrap the federal rate structure and replace it with a 13 percent flat tax. Under Brown's proposal, nearly all deductions, exemptions and credits would be eliminated.

Asked whether a proposal similar to Brown's is a good idea, 51 percent said no, 30 percent said yes and 3 percent said it depends on the rate. The plan was far less popular with Democrats than with Republicans.

Although there is only modest support for such a plan, a plurality of those polled, 45 percent, described exemptions as a misguided attempt to make the tax system fair. Thirty-five percent said they are designed to help the wealthy and special interests, and 13 percent called them well-intentioned. -DE Updated: YY92 MM05 DD01